Kamen Rider Agito: Shinobi of Creation
by Lt. Cmdr. Radner
Summary: Naruto/Kamen Rider Agito and Kuuga. Naruto learns of a legacy that his family has carried since before the age of Shinobi. He now finds himself not only Jinchurikki of Kyuubi but a Bearer of a Seed of Agito.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing, if I did Naruto would not be an idiot, Sasuke would have gone back to Konoha after offing Orochimaru, Naruto and Hinata would be dating, and Sasuke would have gotten the stick out of his butt and realized how much Sakura cares for him.

**Summary: Naruto/Kamen Rider Crossover **Naruto's Father had another reason to seal the Kyuubi no Kitsune into his son. He was the only one he was sure of that could withstand the demon's influence due to the Legacy of his Mother and the Uzumaki Clan. For within them lay the Seed of Evolution.

0o0o0o

**Zenith: **You're starting ANOTHER STORY!

**LCR: **I couldn't help it! Blame for finally centralizing their crossovers and letting me find all those hidden gems that I would have missed.

**Zenith: **You are unbelievable you know that. It's been how long since you updated Tails of a Fox huh? Or War Torn Tribe? Or how about any one of your OTHER stories?!

**LCR: **(hangs his head) A little over seven months for Tails of Fox, (Zenith gives him a stern look), I know… I know! Bad Author, very BAD Author. But I promise I'll get back to Tails of a Fox as soon as I get this chapter out.

**Zenith:** You better otherwise I will tell Myu that you abandoned us (sadistic laughter echoes from the back round) and from what I heard she has new Katana that she is just dying to try out.

**LCR:** (Gulps) Frak Me, I better get back to work then. (He then turns to the readers) So while I get back to work her for your enjoyment is the next little piece of insanity that I have written. And thanks to Kamen Rider Chrome for Betaing. I hope you enjoy it

0o0o0o

_Jutsu  
_**Demon/Lord**-speaking  
_**Overlord**_**-**speaking

**Kamen Rider Agito: Shinobi of Creation**

Ch. 1: The Seed Awakens

Forest Clearing near an old guard post  
Konoha

Naruto smiled smugly as his two shadow clones puffed out of existence. It had taken him what seemed like forever to get the technique down. He admitted that when he first read the name _Kage Bushin no Jutsu_, that it would just an even harder version of the stupid Bushin technique. But as he worked at it, he found it to be increasingly easy. Unlike the Bushin, he didn't have to keep such a tight rein on how much chakra he pumped into it. With the Kage Bushin the more he put it the better the clones turned out. "If this doesn't get me that Hitai-ite, I don't know what will," he said eagerly as he began to run through the seal sequence again. Just as he was forming the final Ram seal, a wave of pain coursed through his head driving him to his knees. "KUSO! Not again!" he groaned as he cradled his now throbbing skull as the pain slowly diminished.

For as long as he could remember, he suffered from headaches, and not the normal kind. But mind numbing, nails on a chalkboard, someone going at your head with a sledgehammer kind of headaches. The pain was so bad that one time he even got hospitalized for it. He remembered because it was the night of the Uchiha Massacre and he somehow ended up being bunked with the Emo King himself, Sasuke Uchiha, not that it mattered much since Sasuke seemed to be totally out of it for most of his stay. He had just been lucky when the ANBU Dog found him when he collapsed in that alley. If any of the other villagers had found him… he quickly silenced that train of thought. If he was to be a Hokage he had to focus on the mission and push his petty problems to the side. Refocusing on the task at hand Naruto returned his attention to the scroll making sure he had the seal sequence down for the Kage Bushin.

0o0o0o0o

Iruka was in a state of utter disbelief as he caught up with Naruto; there was his favorite but albeit most troublesome student in his entire class sitting on the ground with the FORBIDDEN SCROLL of SEALS, open on his lap reading it without a care in the world and as if nothing was wrong. "Naruto just what the hell do you think you are doing!?" cried Iruka as he landed in the clearing.

"Hey Iruka-sensei, I was kinda hoping that you would get here a little later. I only just got my one jutsu and still need to perfect it so if you can just give me another minute…" said Naruto sheepishly with his trademark grin.

"Naruto what are you talking about? You are in a lot of trouble now return the scroll to me so we can go back and get this settled with the Hokage," said Iruka sternly as he held out his hand for the scroll.

"OH COME ON! You're not telling the old man is cancelling the test because I got the drop on him with my Sexy no Jutsu. Mizuki-sensei said that I could use any jutsu in my arsenal as long as I got the scroll, brought it here, and learned one jutsu from it. Now you're telling the Jii-san won't let me finish because I gave him a little nose bleed!" stormed the irate prankster at the seemingly unfairness of it all.

Iruka at this point was confused, Naruto never acted like this when he got it trouble. Usually when he got caught he would try to get away or way lay his attacker and hide out until the coast was clear. This however was more along the line of how reacted when he was treated unfairly. "Naruto what are you talking about? There is no test," he said carefully so as not to upset the kid any further.

"But Mizuki-sensei told me so himself. He said it was a special makeup test offered to students who only just failed the Genin Exam. He said that it is offered to only one student every year hand chosen by the Hokage himself," said Naruto desperately.

"Naruto there is no test," said Iruka sadly as he kneeled down to the boy's level.

"But why would Mizuki-sensei lie to me?" he asked hollowly as he fought off the onslaught of tears.

"Because you are the perfect patsy demon brat!" cried Mizuki as he appeared in a tree branch above the clearing. The pair quickly ducked down as the traitorous teacher let loose a Demon Shuriken that just barely grazed their backs. "Of all the people to figure me out, I have to say that you were not on my list Iruka. You of all people should be glad that the demon is finally getting what he justly deserves," he said with evil smirk.

"Mizuki just what are you doing?!" called Iruka as he and Naruto returned to their feet and maneuvered his student behind him.

"Money and power Iruka; Money and power. Orochimaru is offering a lot of money and positions of power in the new village he is said to be founding for the specialty jutsus of Hidden Villages. I figure that I could take the scroll, learn what I can from it before turning it over to him and getting the rank I DISERVE, instead of babysitting a bunch of little brats," he answered coldly. "And what better way to make a clean escape than to pin the whole thing on the little Fox himself."

"Shut up Mizuki. You'll only sign your own death warrant if you keep this up," said Iruka angrily as the former teacher was encroaching on dangerous territory. He looked back towards his student who was looking confused.

"B…but Mizuki-sensei, you said…"

"I know, it really is sad; you had all that power and now you are nothing more then a shadow of your former self," said Mizuki.

"My former self?" asked Naruto.

"Yes," said Mizuki before he smirked coldly. "But that's right you don't know, how you attacked the village eleven years ago."

"Mizuki stop, the law…"

"The law doesn't apply to men like Naruto and me. Those who seek power will do anything to achieve it," interrupted Mizuki coldly before focusing on his former student. "Think about it, October 10th eleven years ago. The Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked the village, but despite what Iruka taught you, the Yondaime could not kill it. So he sealed it away in a child born only a few hours before."

The weight hit Naruto like a boulder. "No, you're lying. Iruka tell me he's lying!" cried Naruto.

"He can't Naruto because it is true. YOU ARE THE KYUUBI NO KITSUNE! Now, DIE!" cried Mizuki as he let loose his Demon Shuriken that circled around Iruka to hit Naruto. Naruto was too stunned to dodge.

"NO!" cried Iruka as he moved his arm to shield Naruto as his arm became encased in black leather-like material with a red gauntlet. The weapon clattered against it sending out sparks before it fell to the ground, dented.

"So, it's true. The myth about your family is true Iruka and yet you are still a Chuunin," Mizuki laughed coldly. "Orochimaru-sama is right; this village deserves to be destroyed. If they hold back someone with such power."

Iruka growled coldly as the armor vanished from his arm as he turned to face Mizuki. "Get out of here Naruto and get that scroll back to the village and tell the Hokage that Mizuki betrayed us. I'll hold him here."

"B…b…but Iruka-sensei"

"A ninja must finish his mission. You have more then proved yourself now let me do my job," said Iruka firmly. "GO!"

With that Naruto ran off. Mizuki smirked; he would catch the fox brat later. He pulled out his second Demon Shuriken that he had on his back as Iruka pulled out a Kunai. He smiled. As long as Iruka wanted him alive, he would not go all out. And that was fine with him. Without another word they charged each other.

0o0o0o0o

Naruto panted as he raced back towards the village. How could he be so stupid? Mizuki used him like a fool. Some ninja he was. How was he ever going to be Hokage if he could be fooled so easily?

"Even the best of us are fooled young Shinobi. It is only the truly foolish that don't learn from these things," said a calm voice.

Naruto looked up and saw a man standing before him on a tree branch wearing a white shirt and pants. His skin was tanned and his long brown hair was neatly set to frame his face. The only thing that was unsettling and strangely out of place about him were his eyes, which were golden yellow and slitted like a snake's. "What?" he asked of the stranger, feeling startled by his presence.

"A fool does not learn from his mistakes, and you, young Shinobi, do not seem like a fool," he said with a warm smile.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked as he clutched the scroll to him tightly.

"No one who you need to worry about at the moment, and certainly not someone who is interested in that scroll. What interest me, young shinobi, is you," he said with a mysterious and knowing smile, as if he was in on something others could only guess at.

"Me?"

The stranger chuckled warmly at the blonde's remark. "Is that so hard to believe? You are unique my young shinobi, make no mistake about it, and have much potential but then so does everyone but only few can reach it fully." He then gave Naruto a look that made him feel as if he was being X-rayed. The Old Man had given him this look also but the intensity of this one was far beyond anything he used. "But your potential is not what brought me here tonight. Despite what others may think when they see my appearance, I am a friend to this village. To that end…" with that the man seemed to vanish into thin air only to appear in another tree's branches now holding the scroll, "I will return this to your Hokage while you go save your teacher."

Naruto was shocked and made to pull a kunai from his pouch with the intention of retrieving the scroll. But froze when the man made a gesture, "Before you continue with that action young shinobi consider this, 'Those who abandon the mission are scum, those who abandon their friends are worse'. Now you can attack me, retrieve the scroll and continue your mission and in the process leave your teacher without any reasonable backup and possible death; or you can trust someone who has given you no reason not to trust them and save your teacher."

Naruto clenched his hands angrily at the stranger's cold logic before pulling an about face and rushing off to save his teacher. As he did the man could only smile, "He is ready." With that he raised his right hand which bore a blue birthmark shaped like an S on the back of his hand and motioned as if he was releasing something. The mark glowed briefly before returning to its natural state. The man now satisfied turned and began to make his way to the village and snickering at the shadows that were following him in the brush. His brother could be so overprotective sometimes.

0o0o0o0o

Iruka groaned as he rolled to the ground from Mizuki's latest attack. He had underestimated him and was to the point where he was considering using his full power. But Mizuki was too fast and relentless to give him the opening to attempt it.

It was to this situation that Naruto returned to, hiding out in the bushes. He may be a knucklehead but he was not stupid. Mizuki was strong and his best hope to help his teacher was to catch Mizuki off guard. "You surprise me Iruka. You of all people defending that… that thing, the monster that stole your parents and yet here you are keeping me from ending its threat once and for all. Don't you hate it for what it did? Don't you want it dead?" asked Mizuki with mock curiosity.

"Yes," said Iruka with cold resolve forcing the hidden Naruto to pause in shock. "Yes I hate the Kyuubi for what it took from me and I wish it had died eleven years ago."

Naruto had to bite his lip to keep from crying out even as tears streaked down his cheeks. "And Naruto may be a troublemaker and a prankster, but HE IS NOT THE KYUUBI!" yelled Iruka with stern finality that shook Naruto from his sadness.

"If that is the way you feel Iruka, then DIE!" cried Mizuki as he let loose his Demon Shuriken at a defenseless Iruka. For Naruto time seemed to slow as he watched the deadly weapon chart its destructive course. Suddenly Naruto's head seemed to split open with ungodly pain and the last this he could clearly recall was being engulfed in white light.

0o0o0o0o

Naruto's Mindscape

The sewer that represented Naruto's mind shook at the howls of the Kyuubi. But these were not the howls of anger or rage that those who had encountered the beast knew so well. But an unfamiliar sound, fear and pain.

"**Release me bastard!"** cried the Lord of all Bijuu from behind it's four story tall gate sealed with a paper talisman as glowing chains of white metal etched with archaic symbols snaked around him and bound him tightly to the wall and ground.

"_**The child and this world has suffered your presence long enough beast. It is time you remember that you only were allowed to roam for so long because of our discretion. And for you that discretion has ENDED!"**_ said a glowing presence that stood opposite the beast's cage. It made a small gesture and the chains went taut and slammed the Bijuu King to the ground with a slam that could shake mountains. They then quickly began to siphon off its violent red chakra slowly turning it blue. _**"And now let my Seed bloom,"**_ said the being as his glow brightened before engulfing the entire sewer in its brilliance.

0o0o0o0o

Iruka had just enough time to close his eyes as Mizuki's weapon came in range. He waited in agony for the biting sting of death but it never came. All that came was the sound of creaking metal. Slowly he opened his eyes and looked up is shock at something he had only heard of in legend. Before him was a man that stood almost 6' 2" in a black body suit with a metal chest piece colored a forest green with a black stone set directly over his heart. A silver helmet that had a pair of orange eyes and two golden horns sticking out over them covered his head. At his waist was a highly stylized belt with a buckle on it resembling a whirlpool that had a green stone set in its center and two large buttons on his hips. In his gauntleted hands was the bent and irreparably damaged Demon Shuriken that Mizuki had intended to end his life with.

"I don't know who you are bastard but you just made the biggest mistake of your life." With a roar Mizuki rushed the warrior intent on making him pay for his interference. However, the warrior never let him as his hand moving so fast that it would make a Hyuuga blink, deftly caught the offending fist like a parent would a spoiled child. Without a word the man squeezed causing Mizuki to cry out in pain before he shoved him away. Cracking his neck slightly the warrior quickly ran through a seal sequence ending in a Ram seal. Silently two clones of him puffed into existence. The trio took a fighting stance bringing their right foot forward as their horns fanned out with an audible *SHING* sound and a glowing symbol that resembled their helms appeared on the ground below them. The energy from it quickly raced up their right legs causing the seal to disperse and once it had the three ran forward and taking a flying leap landed a triple flying kick right at Mizuki's chest causing him to crash through several yards of trees before finally stopping.

The trio landed with in a crouch and quickly the two clones vanished in poofs of smoke. The original stood up and panted before turning towards Iruka. He didn't know how but he could tell that the warrior was smiling. Without a word the warrior's belt glowed brightly enveloping him before vanishing. Iruka was shocked for there in his place was Naruto grinning with his trademark grin before he collapsed into blissful unconsciousness.

0o0o0o0o

_Hokage's Tower  
Hokage's Office_

Saurutobi sighed heavily as he puffed on his pipe and put away his viewing crystal. It had happened, the one in a million possibility had occurred. But that just showed that Naruto knew how to beat the odds. He then looked over at the returned scroll that had appeared on his desk. He knew that Naruto had encountered a man before returning to Iruka and had seen those eyes. Those he knew from so long ago but had warmth in them that was absent even then. With a sigh he returned to his desk to await their return. He knew a lot of questions would need to be answered and he was not looking forward to answering many of them.

**_TBC..._**

0o0o0o0o

**LCR: **(Looks about the command center as he waits for Zenith to finish reading) Well?

**Zenith: **(Shrugs) It's not bad, not as long as Tail and Claws first chapter but not bad

**LCR: **(smiles hopefully) So you'll keep Myu off my back?

**Zenith: **(Rolls his eyes) Don't I always. Now get back to it you have stories to write.

(**LCR** runs off happily as **Xa'an** appears out of the shadows)

**Xa'an: **You didn't tell him that Myu is out Plot Bunny hunting and won't be back for two weeks?

**Zenith:** (Smirks)Where's the fun in that besides it will give Myu a chance to read the chap and cool off. Besides you and I both know that she is a closet Kamen Rider Fan.

**Xa'an: **(smiles knowingly) Just as you are a closit Power Rangers Fan. (Vanishes as **Zenith** starts to fume)

**Zenith: **I TOLD YOU THAT IN CONFIDENCE! (Runs out sword in hand to do damage to **Xa'an**)

**Next Time:** Naruto learns of his past and the legacy that he must uphold as well as Iruka's shocking secret.

_Until Next time true believers..._

0o0o0o


	2. Chapter 2

**A/n: Another chapter posted for enjoyment. Please excuse the roughness as this chapter is unbetaed. Because of that I am looking for a second Beta reader. If anyone is interested please PM or email me.**

**Also I have a poll up for who you want to see as a Kamen rider. The poll is up on my bio page so please vote and if you choose other please email me the character of your choice. The poll will remain open until I post chapter 4. Also to my reviewers, please leave an email address if you are leaving an anonymous review so that I can respond.**

**So now submitted for your approval:**

Ch. 2: Look underneath the Underneath

_Clearing near old Konoha border outpost_

Naruto groaned as he came to, his head feeling as if someone went at it with an ax. "And the hero returns to the land of the living" said Iruka cheekily. Naruto slowly opened his eyes as his brain rebooted from what he could only call a total blackout. "Easy now you had quiet an experience there, how many fingers do you see" asked his teacher as he held up four fingers in front of Naruto's face.

"Um that's one, that's two, and that one is twenty-six" said the blonde knucklehead with a smirk.

"Well you still have your sense of humor so I think we can rule out a concussion, not a real surprise given that thick skull of yours" said Iruka with a smile. He then helped Naruto into a sitting position allowing Naruto to finally have a clear field of vision as his teacher, looking like he had seen better days, took a seat against a tree trunk his Hitai-ite gone from his brow. He was about to comment when he began to feel a strange weight on his forehead. Cautiously he reached up and felt the smooth surface of a Konoha Hitai-ite instead of his goggles. Surprised Naruto looked over at Iruka who smiled proudly.

"But the test you said…"

"You more than proved yourself Naruto, learning and using the Kage Bushin in the same night and defeating a Chunin to boot, you more than earned that hitai-ite Naruto" said Iruka proudly cutting him off.

Naruto looked at him in shock. "I did all that… But I never got a chance to show you my Kage Bushin and the last time I saw Mizuki-teme he was about to decapitate you!" cried the young ninja.

Iruka looked at him curiously then sighed, "Of course, a first time henshin tends to cause short term memory disassociation" he said softly in an understanding tone. "The memories will return in time Naruto so for now take my word for it, you earned your Hitai-ite tonight."

Naruto looked at his teacher in shock before smiling his first genuine smile in a long time before he embraced his teacher as tears streaked down his face.

0o0o0o0o

_Few hours later  
__Hokage's Office_

Sarutobi was feeling his years tonight as he read the report written by Iruka that only confirmed what he had witnessed through his spy crystal. He sighed heavily as he looked up to the picture of his predecessors and the man who should have been his successor. "You knew didn't you Minato, some how you knew he would awaken his seed" he asked to picture of a young blonde haired man who Naruto would obviously look like in five to seven years. With another sigh he got up and went to his book case and pulled down a small leather bound book with a lock on it like a diary. On the cover were two symbols one a spiral not unlike the one found on Konoha Hitai-ites and the second being what according to Iruka's report was the symbol of Agito. He placed the book on his desk with a heavy thud and moved to take his seat pushing the intercom as he did, "Send them in."

With out another word his door opened as Naruto and Iruka entered his office. It was not the first time this trio had been here. Usually it was because of one of Naruto's pranks or him being caught trying to escape class occasionally accompanied by the either Nara Shikamaru and his friend Akamichi Choji. Unfortunately this was not one of those times. "Sit both of you" said Sarutobi as he himself took his seat at his desk and proceeded to stuff his pipe. "I have gone over your report Iruka and find that it does agree with my own observations and given that it is time for action to be taken and in my personal opinion it is action that is long over due" said the old Hokage seriously. "As of this night, Umino Iruka you are hereby promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin with all rights and privileges that go with it as well as responsibilities" he said causing the pair to drop jaw in shock. "We'll handle the paper work on your promotion in the morning right now I just need to cover the bases with what it is that I am about to tell you both."

"Jii-san, just what is so important that you had to promote Iruka-sensei just to tell us?" asked Naruto with eager curiousness.

The old Hokage sighed and took a puff on his pipe and watched the smoke. "What I am about to revile is an S-class secret known only to me a few Jonin and specific members of the council" with that he handed Naruto a sealed manila envelop that was surprisingly addressed to him.

Carefully he opened it and pulled out its contents a sealed letter, what looked like important legal documents, and… a birth certificate. " _'Let it be known on this date October 10__th__ that one Uzumaki Kushina wife of Namikaze Minato gave birth to a healthy 5 lbs. 7oz. baby boy at 2:07pm named… Namikaze Naruto' _Jii-san is this…"

"Yes Naruto" answered Sarutobi. "That is your official Birth certificate, the one on file with the orphanage and civilian registries were carefully made forgeries provided by our ANBU Counterfeit Identities Bureau at your father's request. I was not to revile your lineage until you either turned sixteen, made Chunin, or had what happen tonight happen."

"Just what are you talking about, Iruka-sensei said that I beat Mizuki-teme but I don't even remember fighting and what about my parents huh? Just who was my dad if could make a request of ANBU like it was nothing?" demanded a now confused and angry Naruto.

Sarutobi sighed as Iruka took a look at the birth certificate as his eyes went wide. "By Kami, Lord Hokage is this real, is Naruto really HIS son?" the old man only nodded.

"WILL SOMEONE TELL ME JUST WHAT IS GOING ON?!"

Iruka looked over at his upset set student and placed a claming hand on his shoulder. "Naruto, Namikaze Minato, your father, was known by two names well known not only in the village but through out the Shinobi world, the Konoha no Kiiroi Senko and the Yondaime Hokage" said Iruka softly.

"What? My… dad… he…"

"He had no choice Naruto" said Sarutobi answered the question the young boy before him was trying to ask. "Only a child recently born could handle the enormous power of the Bijuu let alone the King of all Bijuu. And how could he ask another to make the sacrifice that he himself could not. As I have told you many times, the Hokage must be ready to sacrifice anything to protect the village he serves. He wrote the letter in the envelope just before his death. He intended for you to read it."

In a state of near shock Naruto pulled over the letter and opened it.

_To my dear Naruto,_

_If you are reading this then one of three things has happened. You have turned sixteen in which case the Old Man should have given you this as a birthday gift with many happy returns on your reaching adult hood. Secondly if you have reached the rank of Chunin in which, know that I am most proud of you on the day of your promotion. And lastly, and I hope to Kami that it is not so, that your seed has awakened in which case I can only say that I am so sorry that I will not be there during what might be your most trying time in your life._

_I know you must have many questions and I would like nothing more than to answer every single one of them but time is short and I must go and face the Kyuubi. So I leave that to Sarutobi. I hope that one you can understand and forgive me for what it is that did but know that your mother and I love you and will be watching over you always no matter what._

_Sincerely,_

_Namikaze Minato_

_Yondaime Hokage and more importantly your father._

_PS: One day, should you encounter an old man peeping on the girls at the hotsprings remind him of the debt he owes me after you beat him up._

Naruto smiled as tears streaked down the sides of his face. For so long he had wanted the love of a parent and now he knew, his parents loved him. With a chuckle he folded the letter and put it away before he wiped his eyes. "So since I'm sure I am not sixteen or a Chunin that means that this seed thing happened, just what is it?" he asked hoarsely.

Sarutobi could only smile proudly at the young shinobi's resolve. His father had that same trait, it was not his ability or great skill that made him feared during the war with Iwa but his ability to never give up and find a way to succeed either by doing it himself or by giving others the chance to find the solution. "The answer to that question you will find in this" he said as he pushed the book he had pulled from his bookcase over to him. "The book before you is a relic of the former ninja village located in what was Uzu no Kuni, specifically your mother's clan history. Parts of it are sealed so that only one of the Uzumaki clan could read it, what I could read detailed history from before the great cataclysm that formed our world as it is today to the present. From what your mother told both me and Minato her family descended from one of the first people to awaken their seed."

"Just what is the seed that you keep talking about?" asked Naruto starting to get annoyed.

"It is an old legend from our ancient past that has some measure of truth" said Iruka immediately going into lecture mode "Long ago after Kami created the Earth he turned over control of it to two of his children. Our ancient ancestors called them the Overlords of Light and Darkness, for a time they ruled peacefully. However the pair eventually disagreed over how they should affect humanity. The Overlord of Light believed that humanity should grow and change with out interference except in the most dire of circumstances. His brother, the Overlord of Darkness however believed that humanity should remain guarded and unchanged for all eternity.

The disagreement eventually sparked a war between the two that culminated in a battle that cost the Overlord of Light his life. However as a final act he took the total sum of his power and seeded it through out the populace in the hope that the seed would allow humanity to grow beyond his brother's control. In retaliation the Overlord of Darkness took human volunteers and blended them with the sprits of animals creating Lords who were given the task of killing any person shown to have an active seed. When Kami discovered what happened he had the Overlord of Darkness' physical life ended but before he did, he created an El Lord of Water using what remained of his own life force to oversee the work of all the other Lords and to serve as his representative on Earth.

However the Overlords did leave behind a way for them to return to physical life. Ironically enough the only way for it to be used humanity would have to become smart enough to unlock the secret. About eleven years before the great cataclysm our ancestors discovered and unlocked the secret and allowed the Overlord of Darkness to return to life.

Disappointed at how much humanity had changed, he began making plans to wipe us out and begin again with a clean slate. Kami however had other intentions and used the seeds that the Overlord of Light created to stop him by jumping him forward in time before his brother's resurrection and let him use the last of his power to awaken the seeds in a group of boat passengers."

"Among those passengers was you ancestor Tsugami Shouici born Sawaki Tetsuya. The boat was attacked by the El of Water and Tetsuya lost his memory and took on the name Shouici because of the envelope he had on him at the time. After the Overlord's resurrection he led the fight against him and in fact was the one to finally end it. After the battle the Overlord realized the truth of his brother's beliefs and resolved to look after humanity taking with him the original Tsugami Shouici as a reward for trying so hard to show him the truth of humanity through out the conflict" concluded Sarutobi.

"Okay how does this prove that I have the seed and just what does it do?" the two adults looked at each other before Sarutobi stood and moved over to his cabinet and pulled out his spy glass.

"The bearing of a Seed of Agito as it is formally called has many traits in common with Kekkei Genkai in fact the majority of clans that have Bloodline Limits have a large amount of seed positive but dormant members. Your mother's family was well known for their skill and ability as Shinobi. It was not until after she came here as a refugee that we learned that her family had large number of awakened Seed Bearers. As for what the seed does, that was why I pulled this out" said Sarutobi as he retook he seat. "My Scrying Jutsu can not only spy on events but with this crystal I can replay the last image viewed. Now look into it and watch" with that Sarutobi began running through a series of seals before the orb began to glow. Naruto looked into the orb intently, and watched as the scenes of the last few hours replayed. He watched as he was enveloped in the bright white light and transforming into his armored form; his face off against Mizuki and his sound defeat of him.

Naruto found his mouth unnaturally dry as the images faded from the crystal. "It's alright Naruto just breath" said Iruka as he helped Naruto to lean back as he saw the boy having trouble reconciling what he had seen and the fact that he was the one who did it. From what Sarutobi had said, Mizuki had suffered three cracked ribs, a broken collar bone, and two ruptures in his spinal column as well as numerous sprains, lacerations, and bruises.

"I hope that you understand the weight of the responsibility of your situation Naruto. The power you displayed here is not to be taken lightly and if not properly controlled, it can not only destroy you but this village and everyone in it" said Sarutobi with blunt seriousness.

Naruto audibly gulped at the prospect, there may be a lot of jerks in the village that may disserved to get pranked but he never hurt any one, excepte perhaps their pride. "If I need to control this in order to protect the village just tell me how to do it" he said giving the two men a firm glare of determination. It was a look the old Hokage had seen many a time on his successor's face, the look of utter and unwavering determination. The old man smiled nostalgically.

"Like anything else, the only way to gain mastery of your new powers is to practice which is part of the reason for me promoting Iruka. He is one of the few who can actually train you in your powers and as a Tokubetsu Jonin he can be assigned to assist a Jonin-sensei in the training of his team, and therefore no one can make a fuss over your extra training sessions" said Sarutobi knowingly.

Naruto gave his teacher a look thoroughly confused. Yeah Iruka was the only ninja in the village who even had a chance of tracking him but he was still a regular ninja or as regular as ninja get. Then he recalled the fuzzy memory of Iruka's arm being covered by a red gauntlet during the fight but he had only attributed the vision to his body being hyped on adrenalin. Iruka just chuckled at Naruto confused look. "I'll explain it during our training session tomorrow, nine o'clock at training ground 27 and don't be late" he said.

Naruto nodded, taking the hint that meeting was over for him. Taking up the items his parents left him, he bowed to the two men before exiting leaving the pair alone. Iruka immediately slumped into a chair as exhaustion began to take him. It had been a while since he had to stifle his powers in such a way. It took everything he had to not transform as soon as Mizuki made clear his intentions. Things probably would have worked out better if he had, hindsight was always 20/20 but then things that we could not change always were. He sighed before looking at the hokage as old fears began creeping upon him in new ways. "Hokage-sama, I don't mean to sound rude but are you sure that I am the best person to train Naruto? I am still working on my own training every day and I still have not got to any of the higher powers yet."

The old Hokage just chuckled sagely. "Your powers will appear when they are needed, you above all should know that you cannot rush these things. And as for the training of Naruto, I asked the Shodai and Nidaime the same thing when I was put in charge of training the Sannin all those decades ago. They told me that it was because I asked that they knew I was the right one to teach them. They also said that the best teachers are the ones who learn something from their students. I think you will learn just as much from Naruto as he will from you. Besides should the worst happen I know that you will do your best to save both Naruto and the village, at this point you are perhaps the only one who could stand against Naruto should his seed overwhelm him" said Sarutobi sadly.

"'Hope for the best but plan for the worst' Hokage-sama?" remarked the teacher rhetorically.

"Yes" said Sarutobi as he took a long pull on his pipe and sighed. Deep in his bones he knew, change was coming.

**A/n: I know mostly filler but I wanted to set up something and this chapter was getting long enough as it is. Please review and vote**

**Until next time true believer**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I planned to have this chapter out sooner but life happened. I was in a car accident on the 5th and have been knee high on drugs and pain killers since and have only just been able to finalize this chapter. As always I am in search for a beta and anyone interested can PM or email me. Now for current Poll results as of this posting**

**Hinata: 46**

**Rock Lee: 23**

**Itachi: 15**

**Haku: 7**

**Anko: 7**

**Given the overwhelming support for Hinata I will drop her from the poll since I already know what I going to do with her. The others are still up in the air and I will extend the voting until I post chapter five. Remember to keep voting.**

**And sumitted for your approval:**

Ch. 3: Team Seven

The following week flew by in a haze for Naruto. His training with Iruka-sensei had been intense. He was even more shocked when they first spared together and learned Iruka's secret:

**Flashback** Training Ground 27

_Nine AM the morning following the Meeting with the Hokage_

Naruto yawned loudly as he arrived at the training ground that morning; he had not gotten to sleep until late that night due to staying up and reading his mother's book. Apparently in addition to being one of the best Kunochi in her clan she had been charged as the clan record keeper being the oldest female daughter of the clan head and had recorded much of what had happened up to the take over by Iwa. The book was apparently designed to never run out of pages since at least half the book was filled with blanks. Naruto intended to fill those pages as much as he could since he was the last Uzumaki left. The other half contained pages with seals on them designed to react to different forces. The ones anyone could read responded to touch and body heat while the private sections were sealed in a way Naruto had not yet figured out. He would ask Iruka about it later. Right now despite his tiredness he was eagerly awaiting his teacher so that they could begin his training.

He had only been there a few minutes when his survival instinct kicked in and made him dodge a kick to his head by a warrior in rather familiar battle armor. He was covered in black leather like material with a white chest plate with a gold trim around the neck, shoulder guards and gauntlets. His helm had two large red eyes and disproportionately small horns. His boots had a pair of gold anklets attached to them and a belt around his waist made of metal with a large red stone set in its center and a button on the left hip.

Naruto barely had any time to take this all in before his attacker rushed him again with a flurry of punches and kicks. It took Naruto's all just to dodge them. "Is that really all you have little ninja, I was told an Agito was in this village and that he would be at this training ground, all I see before me is a little wannabe whelp. So where is your master kid, where is Agito?!" demanded the warrior in a harsh tone.

"What do you want with him?" asked Naruto uncharacteristically scared trying to figure out just what was going on.

"Simple punk, the Seed of Agito and those who bear it are said to be the most powerful fighters in the world. Once I defeat him, I plan to take that power and rule the world, now again I ask, WHERE IS AGITO?!" yelled the warrior furiously.

His words shook Naruto from his fear and caused him to snarl. This power was his family's legacy and he would not let some asshole sully it. "Well quit looking pal, cause he's RIGHT HERE!" with yell he rushed forward nailing the warrior with a punch to the chest. The monster grunted slightly before chuckling evilly.

"Well that just makes my job all the easier" it said before it struck with an uppercut that sent Naruto back several feet. "So young, must have only just awakened bet you can't even Henshin consciously yet. So much power and you can't even bring it out" it said as it laughed sinisterly.

'He's right,' Naruto thought to himself as he tried to stand 'I can fight all I want but to beat him I need to call out the power. Come on think what was it that the book said… "To bring forth the power of the Seed, the true power of Agito; one must be calm and focus, one must turn inward to find the light and then draw it out, and follow it to the source. Only then can the true power of Agito awaken."

Recalling the passage he closed his eyes and focused trying to find the light of the seed. The monster took it advantage of the pause to finish his prey off. Just as he was about to lay him out with a roundhouse kick, Naruto with his eyes still closed, raised his arm to block it. His eyes then snapped open as a bright yellow glow formed at his waist with what sounded like a revving engine. The warrior saw that Naruto's eyes were dull and almost trance like and with a surprising show of force forced him back letting the blond slam his hands on the two large buttons causing the center crystal on the buckle to glow and swirl like a whirlpool before blinding him. As it faded in Naruto's stead stood the green armored form from the night before.

Without any further warning Agito struck, nailing his opponent with a hook to the helmet and followed by a right cross that sent him staggering. The warrior struggled to steady himself and counter with a kidney shot followed by a knife's edge chop to his throat only to be blocked and countered with a spin kick to his chest that sent him staggering.

Wasting no further time Agito ran through the seals and called forth his Kage Bushins. The trio quickly dropped into an attack stance as their horns fanned out with a SHING and their gathered chakra pooled forming into the symbol of Agito before getting drawn into their legs. They then struck landing three hits on their opponent's chest and sent him flying across the training ground.

The original landed with a soft thud as his two clones vanished. He looked as his opponent coldly only to hear the strangest thing laughter. Out of the crater the armored warrior stumbled out only different. His armor was now a rich red color and his horns were larger and more complete looking. But the strangest thing of all was that the laughing voice sounded familiar. "Very good Naruto, Hokage-sama was right, you have a lot of potential" he said as his belt glowed and his armor vanished leaving a disheveled Iruka smiling proudly at Naruto.

End Flashback

. Naruto was surprised to learn that Iruka-sensei was descendant of the man who inherited the power of an ancient warrior known as Kuuga who in ancient times fought against demons known as the Grongi led by N-Daguba-Zeba who was in fact responsible for creating Kuuga's powers. The Grongi had been allowed access to the Earth to the remnant effects of the battle between the two Overlords so long ago. In truth many of the supernatural events in one way or another were rooted in or directly caused by that battle.

After defeating them the first time, the original Kuuga's powers were used to seal the Grongi away at the sacrifice of his own life. Unfortunately they were accidentally released almost a thousand years later and Kuuga's power source, the Arcle belt, was passed to Godai Yuusuke who used them to defeat the Grongi and N-Daguba-Zeba once and for all and upon his passing passed it on to the eldest child of his sister Godai Minori and her husband Umino Kenji. Since then the Arcle had been passed on down through the Umino line for generations and onto Iruka-sensei.

He had inherited it from his uncle Umino Hondo. He had been head of the Shugonin Junishi up until his death when he took a Kunai to the chest meant for the Fire Daimyo during an assassination attempt by rouge Iwa nin dissatisfied by Iwa's surrender during the Third Great Ninja war. His death had apparently hit his second in command hardest; sometime after his second in command Kazuma attempted a Coup d'etat only to be stopped by Sarutobi Asuma. After his death all his powers as Kuuga passed on to Iruka, unfortunately do to his age the powers went dormant until Iruka reached sixteen.

Once they emerged the advantage of these powers and the unidentifiable nature of his transformation led the Old Man to give Iruka a place at the academy to protect the future of the village as well as give him cover should the Hokage ever need to send Kuuga out on a mission. Who would honestly believe a mid-level Chunin teacher would actually have near Kage level power. The thought of it nearly made Naruto burst with laughter.

Scratch that, he did burst out with laughter. Unfortunately it was at the time that Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino burst into the classroom trying to get through the door at the exact same time. Naruto quickly found himself the focus of the two preteens' rage. It was only thanks to his seed's warning sense that allowed him to dodge what would have been a very painful hit, not to mention the fact that Iruka-sensei would kill him if his new cloths got ruined before he even got his team assignment. He was now wearing an inverse of his original jumpsuit. It was a midnight blue almost black color with burnt orange highlights with the leaf symbol on the back along with the symbol of Agito superimposed over it. "Ahh, Sakura-chan, what did I do now?!" he cried as he perched on the back of his chair, Sakura's fist cracking the desk where his head had been only moments ago. The two kunochis in-training looked at each other in shock. They then growled angrily before racing over to the free seat next to Uchiha Sasuke.

Naruto just sighed as he retook his seat before glowering over at the far side of the room as nearly every girl in the class fawned and drooled over the Emo king himself Uchiha Sasuke. Now Naruto could tolerate a lot of things, he could tolerate Sakura's constant rejections of his request for a date, he could tolerate (barely) Inuzaka Kiba's bullying, hell he could even tolerate the village either ignoring him, disrespecting him, or down right hating him; that last part he could even understand it to a point given what he now knew. But what really got him was the way every girl in their class flocked to the "oh so cool" Uchiha leaving every other guy in their class behind, and worst part about it was that Emo-teme didn't even care about it.

"If you're hoping to set him on fire with that glare, don't bother, I have been trying since the beginning of the semester" said Inuzaka Kiba coldly from the seat above him.

Naruto gave his long time tormentor a look and sighed. They may not like each other, mainly because they have so much in common not that either would admit it, but the one thing they agreed on was that the attention paid to the surviving Uchiha clan member by the fairer sex was a raw deal. "I just don't see what it is that draws them to him, I mean he doesn't even give them the time of day and they flock to him like Choji to a bag of chips."

"Mendokusei, I don't see what the big deal is. I figure the guy is doing us a favor by keeping all the girls for himself; girls that age are just troublesome" said Nara Shikamaru lazily from the seat below Naruto as he cloud watched from the seat near the window.

"Yeah, well that's the kind of trouble I wouldn't mind getting into" said Kiba as he looked over at the Uchiha's groupies with a growl accompanied by an agreeing yap from his puppy Akamaru from the top of his head.

"For once I agree with dogbreath" said Naruto with a smug smirk. Kiba and Akamaru growled angrily at the jab.

"Bakas" muttered Shikamaru as he looked over at his best friend Choji who was happily munching on a bag of chips. Choji seemed to have the right idea; he paid the whole thing no mind and focused solely on his chips. That was probably why they got along so well, Choji did not demand anything of him and just let him watch his beloved clouds in peace while he did not make fun of the Akamichi's rather… large size.

"Alright everyone, take your seats!" called Iruka as he exited his office looking rather weary. He, the Lord Hokage, and the prospective Jonin sensei for this year's class had been up all night organizing the teams. Scratch that, he was up all night listening to Hatake Kakashi and Yuhi Kurenai slug it out…

_**Flashback**_

_Hokage's office_

_Night Before_

"I don't want the Haruno girl on my team" said the cyclopic ninja never once looking up from his little orange book of porn as he interrupted Iruka's reading of the prospective teams.

"Kakashi you know tradition, despite the leaps Naruto has made he is still ranked as the Dead last in his class and…"

"With all due respect Hokage-sama but screw tradition right now" interrupted Kakashi as he closed his book with a thud. "I observed my prospective team and I can only say that having that Haruno girl on my team will only cause trouble. Uzumaki has a crush on her that is not reciprocated and is usually responded to with violence. If Iruka's report is true, then should she catch Naruto at the wrong moment, she will only get hurt, also her near obsessive devotion to Uchiha will be detrimental to her training. My recommendation is that she's placed on a team that has neither of them let alone together. The Hyuga heiress however I can work with…"

"Not going to happen, Kakashi!" said rookie Jonin Yuhi Kurenai. "That girl has had enough hardship in her life; I will not have you expose her to YOUR training methods."

"Kurenai, you are a Genjutsu specialist, she is a Hyuga. The most you could teach her is how to detect and identify Genjutsu without the use of her eyes. I could teach her ninjutsu that can only benefit from her Kekei Genkai and improve her overall Taijutsu. And the constant exposure to Uzumaki will help her confidence problem immensely. And Haruno has showed a natural talent for both Genjutsu and Medic-nin training. She would benefit a lot more from your training then mine" retorted Kakashi.

"I also observed this years graduating class, Haruno has a hair trigger temper and is more concerned about her looks then being a good ninja!" argued Kurenai.

"And who better to teach her how to be a proper Kunochi then one who has succeeded and gotten as far as you" Kakashi answered back coolly.

"That is enough" said Sarutobi ending the argument. "I have heard your arguments and will take them under advisement now let us move on to the next team" said the old Hokage in a tone that left no room for argument. Never the less the two Jonin continued their argument silently trading death glares that in some cases could put a Hyuga to shame.

_**End Flashback**_

"Moving on, Team Six is still active so Team Seven will have Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke…" there was a loud groan from Naruto that brought the sum killing intent of every female in the class save one to bear on the blonde. "And Hyuga Hinata and your Jonin sensei will be Hatake Kakashi" finished Iruka as the female members of the class moaned in despair.

However said female seemed to be left in stunned shock. "I'm… I'm… I'm on Naruto-kun's team… Imonnarutokunsteam!" she cried to herself mentally in joy as inner Hinata began doing a happy dance and waving about sparklers as if it was a festival celebration.

Naruto just looked up at his new teammate. Of all the girls in their class, Hyuga Hinata confused him the most. She didn't hate him or attempt to beat him to death when he said something disparaging about Sasuke like Sakura or, he shuddered, Yamanaka Ino who seemed to be even scarier then Sakura and she screamed like a banshee. Hinata just seemed to stare at him when she thought he wasn't looking and when he caught her she turned away with a blush. She also seemed to suffer strange fainting spells; she seemed to collapse into unconsciousness every time he was near her. Naruto just sighed as he listen to Iruka continue listing the new teams.

"And lastly team 10 will be Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Choji" there was a cry of despair from the Uchiha Fan Club co-president followed by a groan from Shikamaru as he banged his head on the table as Choji tried to comfort him even going as far as to offer him the last chip from his bag which for anyone who knew the Akimichi clan knew was like volunteering to donate a kidney to a dying friend. "Okay everyone you have a lunch break for one hour. Please use it to get to know your teammates, after lunch you will meet your Jonin senseis. I wish you all the best of luck and that I am proud to have been your sensei" he said before giving a bow to his students before dismissing them.

Naruto smiled forlornly before he stood up with a heavy sigh and made his way to his new teammate. He may not like the guy but Iruka-sensei would drum him into the ground during training if he did not make the effort especially if he decided to use him for target practice. "Hey Sasuke, listen since we're a team now, I was wondering if you wanted to get some lunch over at Ichiraku's?" he asked the Emo Uchiha survivor with a reluctant effort. Iruka took a look at this and smiled with a small amount of pride in his student.

Sasuke just harrumphed and got up giving Naruto that cold look he gave people who annoyed him. "We may be teammates Uzumaki but we are not friends. I will tolerate you as long as you are on my team but the moment that you start to hold me back I will waste no time burying you" he said in a voice so cold that Naruto thought that icicles would form from his breath. He then got up from his seat and walked out ignoring the calls of his adoring stal...err fans.

Naruto just glowered at the Uchiha's retreating form as his imagination began painting pictures of him standing tall over a defeated Sasuke in his full Agito armor adorned with the hat and robe of Hokage and Sakura, Ino, and strangely enough Hinata surrounding him proclaiming their undying love and how awesome him was. Naruto laughed manically and was so engrossed in his fantasy that he did not notice Hinata come up behind him until she cautiously tapped him on the shoulder causing him to nearly jump out of his skin. "Gomen! Gomen naisa Naruto" cried the Hyuga heiress with a pleading bow clutching the large bento in front of her so tightly that her knuckles were going white.

"It's alright Hinata, just be a little louder next time" he said as he pounded his chest in his attempt to steady his heart.

"H…H…Hai. I w…w…was wondering, s…since we're teammates, if y…you wanted to… have lunch with me?" she asked with a stutter and rushing the last part of the sentence out as quickly and coherently as possible.

Naruto smiled rather surprised, both by being invited and because she had not fainted yet. "Um… yeah I would like that a lot Hinata-chan" he then looked at the bento and chuckled nervously. "Uh if you could just give me a minute to run to Ichiraku's…" he said realizing that he didn't have a lunch with him.

"T…That's alright. I…I made extra… f…for my team" said Hinata with a nervous smile.

"Or we can do that, I know this great spot on the roof where you can see the Hokage Monument on one side and almost the whole village on the other" he said thoughtfully and held out his hand to lead the way. Hinata took it carefully as her mind reeled from the contact.

"Naruto-kun… is holding… my hand. Naruto-kun is holding my hand! Narutokunisholdingmyhand! NARUTOKUNISHOLDINGMYHAND!!!!!!!!!" she cried out mentally as Naruto led them to the roof and Inner Hinata swooned before keeling over in a dead faint her cheeks flushed and hearts in her eyes and a dreamy smile on her face.

0o0o0o0o

Naruto did not think it was possible… It had never occurred to him that it could happen… But it did, he found something he liked more then Ichiraku's Ramen: Hinata's cooking. She had filled her bento with various kinds of sushi, rice, baby pickles, cold chicken with a ginger glaze, grilled Kobe Beef with snow peas and individual strawberry shortcakes for desert (They split the third one meant for Sasuke).

After lunch they returned to the class room to wait for their sensei… That had been almost three hours ago and everyone had left including Iruka who said he had "Paperwork" to finish. Meaning he was heading to their private training field to practice, of the eleven forms his powers had, he had access to four of them and two of them were default forms that he had from the get go and the fourth one was so physically draining that he could only activate it for 90 seconds at a time or get rendered near powerless for two hours. That had been two hours ago and by now Naruto should have been at the point were he would be pondering what prank he would pull on their tardy sensei.

But that was not the case since he and Hinata had been talking almost non-stop about his various adventures dodging ANBU and the time he convinced Shikamaru and Choji to help him steal the Hokage's hat during a field trip. He even told her about his secret love of gardening which made her smile since she had a knack for making herbal creams using pants from her family's garden. When he said that her family must be really proud of her she got this sad look on her face, Naruto's new and more aware mind quickly filed this away under investigate later and quickly made to distract her with his latest adventure involving the Hokage's grandson and his "tutor" Ebisu-teme.

"Okay so Ebisu had me and Konohamaru-kun cornered when his perfect Oiroke no Jutsu failed to knock that closet pervert out I had to pull out a new technique that I had been working on" he said with what he thought was dramatic flourish, in reality it made him look silly but Hinata was still eagerly awaiting the out come.

She didn't mind that his secret technique was just a henge of him as a naked woman; in the ninja world you used anything and everything to get an edge over your enemy. Since the majority of ninja were men then a henge like this would be effective against 90% of the possible enemy ninja you would face. The other 10% would either be Kunochi or not interested in women. This point was driven home when recalled a story her father once told her, when she was younger and her mother was still alive, how the revered Yondaime had created a technique based upon the old prank of Kancho called the 1000 Years of Death. The prank by itself was completely harmless but the Yondaime coupled it with a thrust of chakra that sent the opponent flying several yards. When she asked how he knew this he quickly changed the subject and went back to dealing with some clan business, it was one of the few good memories she had of her father. "New technique, but your Oiroke no Jutsu knocked out Hokage-sama, if that failed to knock this guy out what could?" asked Hinata cautiously.

"That's the trick, all guys are perverts Hinata-chan. The only difference is the various degrees of perversity. Now a normal pervert will get knocked out by the Oiroke no Jutsu every time. They are at the middle and therefore the easiest to affect, for a closet pervert like Ebisu he may get shaken but can shrug it off. The only way to get someone like that you have to hit him with such power that he can only submit. Once I learned the Kage Bushin it became the key to my new ultimate technique: _Harem no Jutsu_" he said proudly. Hinata looked at him in shocked surprise while Sasuke, who was only listening because he was bored, just rolled his eyes.

"Dobe."

"You got something to say Teme?" said Naruto turning to other team mate angrily.

"I'm just amazed that someone who claims to hate perverts so much can create such perverted jutsu" he muttered coldly.

"YOU WANT A PIECE OF ME EMO-TEME?!" cried Naruto angrily as he shot up knocking his chair over.

"Like you could give me even a light work out dobe" said Sasuke coldly with an eye roll.

"WHY YOU!!!!!!" yelled Naruto at he rushed to deck his brooding teammate his coat slipping Hinata's hand as she tried to stop him. Before he got a chance his fist was caught by a silver haired man that appeared in a swirl of leaves and a Hitai-ite over his left eye and the lower half of his face covered by a black mask.

"My first impression of you… is that you're all a bunch of idiots" said the ninja coolly as he pushed Naruto back and stood between the two. "I'm your Jonin sensei Hatake Kakashi and as of right now any problems you may have with each other, any school yard grudges are to be dropped. Once you leave this room you are ninja of the leaf and I expect you to act like it. That said if you still feel the need to pummel each other, make sure I am not around so that I won't have to fill out the paper work. Now meet me on the roof and we will get started" at that Kakashi vanished in a swirl of leaves.

The trio looked at each other before rushing out and making for the nearest stairwell.

0o0o0o0o

"Not bad, most Genin usually take a full ten minutes to get up here" said Kakashi with a smirk that could only be seen because of the crinkles near is sole good eye as he watched his prospective team catch their breaths. None of them were panting heavily but that was no surprise. The Hyuga girl's family training obvious helped to build up her endurance and the Uchiha would never show any sign of weakness even in front of allies. Naruto was the only one who showed any obvious exhaustion but that vanished in a few minutes. "Now that we are out of that stuffy classroom why don't we get to know each other, tell me something about yourselves; likes, dislikes, hobbies, and dreams for the future."

"Uh… K-Kakashi-sensei could you start… s-since we only just met you?" asked Hinata meekly.

Kakashi eye smiled hoping to put the Hyuga heiress at ease while in his head _"Need to work on that stutter and her confidence." _

"Alright I'll start. As I said I'm your Jonin sensei Hatake Kakashi. I'm not really comfortable telling you my likes and dislikes, my dreams are my own, and hobbies well… I have a lot of hobbies" he said cheekily giving them another eye smile.

"All we learned was his name" muttered Naruto darkly.

"Okay, Hyuga you go first" said Kakashi pointing to Hinata.

The Hyuga heiress eeped audibly and began to fiddle with her fingers. "I-I-I'm Hyuga Hinata of the Hyuga clan. I like cooking, m-making homemade herbal medicines, a-a-and…" she looked towards Naruto briefly and blushed before continuing. "I dislike people who judge people too quickly and dash their dreams simply because they seem to be impossible and people who force other to work against their will. M-my dream is… to be a-a-a good heiress for my clan."

"_Needs work on her confidence. Probably should partner her up with Naruto a lot and hope some of that bravado rubs off on her" _he thought to himself. "Okay, you mister gloom and doom; you're next" he said pointing to Sasuke.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke, I have no hobbies except for training, I dislike those that hold me back and my dream, no my purpose is to kill a certain man" he said darkly.

"_Avenger great, something is definitely going to need to be done about that" _he thought to himself. "Alright, you blondie; your turn."

Naruto gave his sensei a cold look before starting. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. My likes are ramen and Hinata-chan's cooking and not necessarily in that order. My dislikes are the time it takes for cup ramen to cook and pompous girl hogging emo-temes. My hobbies are eating ramen and training and my dream is to be the greatest Hokage ever!" he said with bravado that caused Hinata blushed in admiration and Sasuke to scoff.

Kakashi chuckled. _"So the knuckled head is the one that need the least work. I can leave him to Iruka for the time being while I get the other's up to par. I am eager to see just what he can do with those powers of his"_ he thought. "Okay now that's out of the way I have good new and bad news for you. Good news is that you are now Leaf Ninja, the bad news is that you are not Genin yet" he said with cool bluntness.

"WHAT! BUT ALL THAT WORK… I BEAT UP MIZUKI-TEME AND TOOK THE EXAM AND WE ARE NOT GENIN YET!!!!!!!" yelled Naruto as his comrades just stared in shock.

"The Academy Exam only filters out those ready to test for Genin and those that need another year to prepare. Those who pass the exam are given a Genin Test by their prospective Jonin senseis. Of all the teams that pass, sixty-six percent of them fail the Genin Test and are sent back to the academy" he said coolly causing all three prospective Genin, even Naruto, to gulp nervously. "Now tomorrow morning at 7AM we will meet at training ground 27 for some survival training and if all goes the way I expect you three will be reporting back to the academy for remedial training the following day" he said with a cold chuckle.

"OH YEAH! WE'LL BEAT YOUR STUPID TEST, JUST YOU WATCH!" yelled Naruto defiantly.

"I'm sure, oh and since I am such a nice guy I recommend that you don't have any breakfast tomorrow… unless you want to get sick" said Kakashi coolly as he made his way to the edge of the roof. "Until tomorrow" and with that he vanished in a swirl of leaves.

Naruto growled angrily clenching his fists. "I'll see you guys in the morning, I need to go hit something" he said barely reigning in his rage as roof hopped away towards his and Iruka's training ground. He was sure his teacher wouldn't mind being his punching bag.

The two remaining ninjas looked at each other. Hinata looking worried and Sasuke confused. The pair then just let out a sigh and before leaving for their homes and neither noticing the shadow following Naruto towards the training grounds.

0o0o0o0o

_Rooftop of Hokage's Tower_

_Following the meeting_

The man in white and the strange golden eyes watched with a knowing smile as the meeting broke up. Next to him stood a strange creature that looked like a strange mixture of man and whale. He wore a leather coat-like garment that had a wing pin on the right side that had blue ribbons on it. In his right hand was a lance like weapon with a tip that resembled a whale's tail. The creature looked to the man _"Tetsuya's descendant is certainly interesting Overlord-sama." _

"I thought you might like seeing the descendent of your former foe in action. He is certainly an interesting subject. There has never been a Seed Bearer like him since Tetsuya, I think we can expect great things from him" said the man with a smile.

"_You think he might be the one to defeat the defiler?_" asked the Whale creature.

The Gold eyed man's face grew stern. "In time, I only hope that I am there to see him realize the futility of his quest and the realization that on his death he will have to answer for his crimes. Have your sibling had any luck in locating his lair?"

"_None sir, Wind said she came across a few abandoned bases but no firm leads and Earth said that rumors are going about that he is planning something but he doesn't know what yet but he has yet to hear from one of his main contacts" _said the Whale creature.

"Inform me once you know something" said the Gold Eyed man. The whale creature bowed before he transformed into a ball of blue energy and flew off leaving the man alone on the roof. Change was in the air and he couldn't help but smile.

**A/N: Another chapter done and I hope you enjoyed it. Remember to Review and vote**

**Until next time true believer!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/n: Okay for the record I have had this chapter done for a while and was holding off on posting it in hopes of finding a beta. After rereading this chapter I actually liked how it turned out so I figured you deserved to see it. Chapter 5 is started I just need to figure what I'm going to do with it.**

**As always I own nothing, if I did I wouldn't have to worry about paying off student loans. So submitted for your approval...**

Ch. 4: Underneath the Underneath

_Training Area 27_

_The Next day_

_9:30 AM_

Naruto yawned slightly as he arrived at the assigned training ground. After the meeting yesterday he spent almost all of his training time with Iruka-sensei using him as a punching bag. Iruka had somehow expected this and gotten some of his own personal training in earlier with the help of an old teammate of his, a fellow Tokubetsu Jonin he called Mitarashi-chan, so that he could allow Naruto to use the full time to release some of his pent up anger. After the session they went out for a late Ramen dinner and let Naruto to verbally vent about his "sensei".

0o0o0o

_**Flashback**_

0o0o0o

"It's NOT funny Iruka-sensei. I went through all that hard work, taking that exam THREE times only to find out that I have a two-out of-three chance of not passing the exam that matters and possibly get stuck back in the stupid academy. I mean just who does Kakashi-baka think he is!" growled Naruto as he poked at his Ramen.

"Your Father's apprentice" said Iruka softly into Naruto's ear. This brought the blonde's tirade to a crashing halt as he looked to his teacher in disbelief. "He may not look it but Kakashi is one of the best Ninja in the village and while he may have his… eccentricities, he's very good at what he does. However he does have exceptionally high standards but every team that failed his test went on to become even better ninja thanks to that extra year of remedial training or they realized that they just weren't cut out for the life of a Shinobi."

"I still say he's just a lazy pervert whose more interested in that orange book of smut then training" argued the blonde before he chugged the warm ramen broth before calling for a seventh bowl.

"Pervert maybe but he is one of the best Jonin in Konoha. If you knew his story then perhaps you might not judge him so harshly" said Iruka with a sad smile. "The fact of the matter is, the reason he has failed every team he's been assigned is because they failed to see underneath the underneath and realize the true meaning of his test; at least that's what Hokage-sama said."

"True meaning?" asked Naruto looking confused. "What true meaning, a test is a test; you pass or fail, that's all there is to it."

"Yes but how can you pass a test if you can't read the directions" said Iruka with a knowing smile as Ayame placed their latest bowls on the counter. Naruto felt utterly lost at that thought.

"So what do I do then if I can't read the directions to the test?" asked the perplexed blonde.

"You do the one thing I spent all year trying to get you to do… THINK" he said firmly. "And remember what he told you, 66% of teams fail the test. That alone could mean the difference between passing and failure" said Iruka with a knowing smile before he dug into his ramen.

0o0o0o

_**End Flashback**_

0o0o0o

"Morning Hinata-chan" cried Naruto as he approached his teammates. Hinata smiled and waved nervously.

"Ohayoo gozaimasu Naruto" she said blushing. "Y-y-you're a little late but it seems that Kakashi sensei is as well."

"I figured as much, Iruka-sensei said that Kakashi sensei is always tardy unless it's something important or it involves his smut. He said that you can basically add three hours to whatever start time that Kakashi gives you" said Naruto cheekily.

"Y-y-you saw Iruka-sensei yesterday, but I thought he would be getting ready for his next class of student?" asked Hinata curiously.

"Oh yeah you didn't know, Iruka-sensei got promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin and was assigned to give me extra training to help me catch up. We had a late training session last night, it was partly the reason why I was late" said Naruto laughing slightly embarrassed.

"It figures that the dobe passing the test was a complete fluke" said Sasuke coldly. "They probably only let graduate so that they would be rid of you and teach someone who is actually intelligent."

"Keep it up Emo-teme and I'll show you just how much of dobe I am" retorted the blonde angrily as Hinata did her best to hold him back.

"Well if this how things are going to be I may not even have to wait for the test to finish before failing all you" said a voice from the tree Sasuke was leaning against. The three looked up and saw Kakashi perched on a branch like a bird and his face (what they could see of it) crinkled into a knowing smile.

Naruto was the only one who seemed to be able to speak, "You're early Kakashi-sensei."

"Well I only got slightly lost on the road of life today and only had to help one old lady cross the street…" he stared to say only to get cut off by Naruto cry of "LIAR!"

"Right well let's get started" said the cyclopic scarecrow as he pulled out a preset timer and set it on one of the posts. "Okay this timer is set for noon, once it goes off those of you who failed to complete the mission will be tied to one of these posts and forced to watch as the rest of us eat lunch. As for the mission itself…" he then deftly reach into a pocket of his flak vest and pulled out two bells on strings and dangled it in front of the trio. "You must retrieve one of these bells and yes there are only two meaning one of you is guaranteed to fail and go back to the academy. If you don't want it to be you then you must come at me with the intent to kill but I should warn you, I have never had a Genin take a bell from me" he said coldly and without any further warning started the timer. As soon as he did Sasuke immediately vanished, leaving Naruto and Hinata alone with Kakashi.

"Umm, N-N-Naruto-kun, s-s-shouldn't…" started Hinata only to be cut off by Naruto.

"It's okay Hinata go, I'll be alright" he said with comforting smile. The Hyuga heiress nodded in understanding before disappearing into the trees herself.

The former apprentice of the Yondaime gave the blonde a curious look. "You do realize that when I started the timer that the test started?"

"Yeah and if there is one thing I've learned in the academy, its that problems only go away if you face them not run from them" retorted Naruto smartly as he slipped into a combat stance.

"Have it your way then" said Kakashi tiredly as reached into a pocket causing Naruto to tense figuring he was about to pull a kunai or shuriken. What he got was an orange bound book with a big red age warning on the back cover.

Naruto looked at his "sensei" incredulously. "Are you KIDDING ME! You're supposed to be testing us and instead you reading smut! Don't you have any ninja pride?" cried the blonde angrily.

"But it's just getting to the good part and besides I can take on a rookie Genin with just one hand" said the Jonin glibly causing Naruto to snarl with indignation.

"Yeah well I'm not just any rookie Genin _Sensei_ and I had hopped to save this for an emergency but you just really ticked me OFF!" at that Naruto crossed his right arm across his chest and closed his eyes and allowed his focus to turn inward as he mentally followed the light to his seed. Once there he drew in his breath and pulled his arm in and exhaled slowly pushing it forward as if he was doing a Tai Chi breathing exercise and instantly a light burst around his waist as a familiar metal belt took form. When it did his eyes snapped open revealing not their normal mischievous blue but cold and slitted like a fox's with hints of red at the edges of the iris, like flaming chips of ice as a strong wave of killing intent flooded the area.

Kakashi looked up from his book and smirked slightly, 'Well it looks like they finally gave me a Genin who is serious about being a ninja' he thought to himself as he returned the book to the relative safety of it's pocket as he slid a kunai from his leg holster and slipped into a combat stance of his own.

Normally a rookie Genin would be taking a step back at this moment, but Naruto was anything but normal as his response to this was to just look at Kakashi coldly before crying out "Henshin!" and slamming the buttons on his belt and rushing to meet his sensei head on as he initiated his transformation from knuckle headed Naruto into an Agito.

Not waiting for his armor to finish forming Naruto rushed his sensei with a shot to his face forcing the senior ninja to dodge and counter with a side kick. Naruto quickly blocked with an armored gauntlet before nailing the Scarecrow with an elbow to his knee forcing him onto one knee.

Kakashi quickly retaliated with a kunai swipe to his opponent's neck forcing Naruto to back-flip out of the way giving his sensei a chance to recover himself. "Lesson One: Taijutsu, the Physical Art" said Kakashi coolly before he twirled his kunai and rushed his student. Naruto growled and met his charge only to have his opponent vanish before he made contact. "Never let your opponent get behind you," gloated the Jonin as he clasped his hands into what looked like a tiger seal before channeling a small amount of chakra. Since his student wore armor, he needed to give this technique a little oomph.

"Naruto get away from him!" cried Hinata from her hiding spot in the bushes. Unfortunately all that did was distract him.

"Too late, _Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu Ougi: Sennen Goroshi! (Secret Konoha Taijutsu Technique: 1000 Years of Death)" _cried Kakashi as he trusted his hands forward with his index fingers nailing Naruto right in his crack along with the small burst of chakra. The effect sent the armored embodiment of creation soaring through the air to land with a loud splash in the river causing his focus to waver and reverse his transformation.

"That's one down, now whose next?" asked Kakashi as he pulled his book out again before he began to walk casually into the wooded area of the training ground.

0o0o0o0o

"Naruto! NARUTO!" cried Hinata from the river bank as she frantically searched for her secret crush.

"I'm right here Hinata" said Naruto from a tree perch his pulled into a tight pout.

"Na-Naruto, y-you're alright?" asked Hinata in near shock.

"Just wounded pride" said Naruto darkly. "Stupid Kakashi-sensei, using a dirty trick like that, just what the hell is he playing at butt-raping me like that. No real ninja would do that!"

With that he leapt down from his perch causing Hinata to squeak at suddenly being in so close to him. But Naruto didn't notice as what he had just said began to reverberate in his head. "No real ninja would do something like THAT…" he said so softly that it broke Hinata out of her shock.

"N-Na-Naruto, what is it?" asked the Hyuga heiress in concern as she had never seen her crush become this quiet unless he was hiding from teachers or about to pull one of his pranks.

"Look underneath the underneath, there is more to this test then what Kakashi-sensei told us" said Naruto in total seriousness. This was exactly what Iruka had warned him about. "How can you pass a test if you can't even read the directions?"

"Naruto, y-y-you're beginning to scare me" said Hinata unable to hide her nerves.

"Wha… Oh, sorry Hinata-chan. It just that I think there is more to this test then what Kakashi told us, and some of the things are not adding up. Iruka sensei told me that all the teams were carefully constructed to maintain balance. No team being stronger or weaker in any one area more then the others. So why go to all that trouble if they just intend to break us up with this test" said Naruto with calm rational.

Hinata had found herself stunned once again; this was not the same Naruto she knew in the academy. Yes he was still a blonde knucklehead with love of pranks but when the time came, he could become so calm that it just seemed to roll off him. At that moment in his presence Hinata felt totally at ease and that everything, not just this mission but all the things that she was worrying about, would be alright. She could also see where Naruto mind was going. "They wouldn't go to that much trouble to just split us up in the end, it would be a waste."

Naruto smiled at Hinata genuinely glad to see that someone else could see that they were missing something key to surviving this test. "Exactly, there is more going on here. Like a big puzzle piece is missing."

"'You must come at me with the intent to kill'" said Hinata as she repeated Kakashi-sensei's instructions to them and then it hit her like one of her father's Juken strikes during training. "He wanted us to split up" said the heiress softly.

Naruto eyes went wide as he considered that possibility and another piece of the puzzle fell neatly into place. "Yeah, YEAH! That has to be it, telling us that there is a 66% fail rate for this test. That there are only two bells that, if Kakashi was telling us the truth, would mean at least one of us would fail. He wanted us to split up but why would…" said Naruto until in ever evolving mind finally saw the last connection needed to complete the picture and from the look he saw on Hinata's face she could see it too. "Kakashi-sensei you sneaky teme, I take back most of the bad things I said about him, he's very good."

"None of us could take him on by ourselves, only the three of us in tandem could hope to over power him and take the bells. But what if we are wrong about that and only two of us can pass the test Naruto?" asked Hinata concernedly.

The blonde bearer of the Seed of Agito shrugged his shoulders. "If that is the case then you and Sasuke take the bells. If anyone could do with another year of training it's me" he said with trademark smile that Hinata could see right through even without her Byakugan. She could see that, he was silently praying that he was not wrong in his hypothesis.

"N-Naruto" she said softly in awe at how selfless he was being. Immediately something inside her burst and she realized that she could not let Naruto do that and resolved her that when the time came, she would go back. After all his hard work, Naruto disserved to be on a Team a lot more then the disappointing heiress of the Hyuuga clan.

"Listen Hinata-chan, I need you to find Sasuke. Given our history he won't listen to me and if he attacks Sensei on his own then our chances of passing are shot. I'll do what I can to keep Sensei occupied while you try to find him alright" said Naruto in such a way that one of the older generation of Ninja would swear that it was the Yondaime giving the orders.

"Hai, I will try to find him" said Hinata silently vowing to not stop until she found Sasuke and made him understand, one way or another.

Without another word the two almost Genin left the area splitting up to complete their respective missions. If they had remained close by they would have seen the air shimmer in a branch above the one Naruto had perched on earlier. "Lesson 2: Genjutsu: the Art of Illusion; well this definitely makes things more interesting. I may actually have a team to train after all but can they get past the final hurdle" remarked the cyclopic Jonin as he turned a page in his book as if nothing was wrong before vanishing in a swirl of leaves.

0o0o0o0o

"Just where the hell are you dobe?" muttered Sasuke as he lost sight of him. He had been on Kakashi's trail waiting for the right moment when he saw Naruto. He had witnessed the fight the two had and had witnessed the armor the dobe was using and was perhaps one of the few in his generation that knew what that armor was but was surprised to see it outside of a clan with a Kekei Genkai. "How did you unlock your seed Naruto?"

"He defended a cherished friend" said Kakashi in a playful voice as he appeared in the bushes next to Sasuke who had just enough time to gasp before dodging Kakashi's _Gokakyu_.

"Lesson 3: Ninjutsu. I have already tested your comrades and found them lacking. Tell me, can you do any better?" asked Kakashi with a smirk.

Not bothering to answer Sasuke rushed him with a kick to his head that Kakashi caught deftly forcing Sasuke to follow up with an easily read punch that was also caught. Sasuke then smirked as he spun bringing his free leg up to hit Kakashi's head while his hand just grazed the bell that he would have caught if Kakashi had not released his limbs and pulled away once he realized what the young Genin-to-be was planning.

"Not bad, adaptation and improvisation but your weakness is not your technique" said Kakashi with a chuckle right before Sasuke ran through a series of hand signs.

"_Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu"_ cried the scion of the Uchiha clan as he expelled a large tongue of flame from his mouth much to Kakashi's surprise.

"Impossible, a Genin shouldn't have enough chakra for the Gokakyu" he said before the flames engulfed.

With a smirk, Sasuke cut the jutsu and let the flames disperse only to gape in shock as he found the crater he had just created empty. "Dammit where did he go?" he asked himself as his head darted around the area looking for his opponent.

"Right where you least expect me" said Kakashi as his hand shot out of the ground to grasp Sasuke's leg only to have his target pulled away by Hinata as she leapt out of her teacher's reach.

"S-Sasuke-san, are you alright?" asked Hinata concernedly.

"I don't need your help Hyuuga; I can deal with him alone. You and the dobe can have a shot at him once I get a bell" said Sasuke coldly as he got to his feet.

"Sasuke, we can't fight him alone. He's a Jonin and we are not even Genin yet…" started Hinata only get cut off.

"If you want to fail this test you stupid bitch that's fine just DON'T HOLD ME BACK" yelled Sasuke as he pushed her aside and rushed a resurfaced Kakashi intending to finish once and for all. At least that was until Naruto appeared out of nowhere and nailed him just under his ribcage knock the air out of him and sending him crashing head first into oblivion.

0o0o0o0o

Groaning Sasuke came to and found his movement severely hampered as he was now tied up to one of the three posts in the clearing where they had first met. "Consider what I did a warning Teme, say what you like about me but insult a friend of mine again and I will make you wish that you were never born" said Naruto coldly from his seat atop one of the post next to him.

"I-I-It wasn't his fault Naruto, I-I-I didn't get a chance to explain it to him…" said Hinata in Sasuke's defense.

"That's no excuse, a Ninja must be able to trust his or her team implicitly" said Kakashi as he leaned casually next to the tree reading his little orange book without a care before he snapped it shut and turned to face the trio. "Well time is up and no one got a bell but then most of you here were able to see underneath the underneath and see the true test. A test that one of you passed with flying colors, that one of you only mostly passed, and that one of you failed miserably" said the cyclopic Shinobi with uncharacteristic sternness.

"Hinata, Naruto; the two of you performed beyond my expectations in figuring out the real meaning of my test" he said causing Sasuke to look confused or at least what appeared to be confusion. "And I would have considered passing you both it Naruto had not knocked his teammate out."

"But as for you Sasuke, you totally missed the point of this test. Yes the ultimate goal was to defeat me and retrieve the bells but I had hoped that I made it clear, if you thought about it, that the only way you could do so was to WORK TOGETHER" said Kakashi giving Sasuke a sharp prod to his forehead.

"But the test you said…"

"Did you honestly think that the Hokage and all the Jonin senseis would have gone to the trouble of carefully creating well balanced teams if only to just split them up in the end. When I said this test has a 66% fail rate, it meant overall. That means out of the nine teams formed from your graduating class, only three are likely to pass. And this team was likely to have been one of them… if you had not dropped the ball" said Kakashi coldly cutting the Uchiha survivor off.

"In the academy you worked for your own self improvement but out here, Shinobi live and die by their teammates. You have to be able to trust your team to always have your back, for example" Kakashi suddenly pulled out a knife and pointed it at Hinata. "Naruto, kill Sasuke or I slash Hinata's throat."

The blonde simply gave his sensei a cocky smile before vanishing in a puff of smoke. "Drop the knife or I show you how the _Sennen Goroshi _with a kunai" said the real blonde as he poked his sensei's back with the tip of his kunai as he leapt down from the trees.

"Do you understand now Uchiha, 90% of all Genin either die or leave the service in their first year because they can't grasp that one undeignable truth" said Kakashi with a satisfied smile as he holstered his blade. "As of right now, my final standing is that Naruto and Hinata should return to the academy for remedial training, while you Sasuke, should just be dropped from training all together."

Sasuke eyes widen in shock, being a Shinobi was all he had. It was the starting point to reach his ultimate goal. Without it, he had and could do nothing; his life would be over right then and there. "However, given the fact that two of you did figure out the meaning of the training and performed far better then any other, I am will to give you another chance" said Kakashi coolly as he pulled out two bento boxes and handed one each to Naruto and Hinata. "You two eat up but give nothing to Sasuke and rest for one hour, I will return then and retest you. And I will be watching you so DO NOT FEED SASUKE, my word is law on this, if either of you do, the whole team will fail" said Kakashi threateningly before vanishing in a swirl of leaves.

Silently the three junior ninjas sit and begin eating in total silence that was only broken by the insistent growls of Sasuke's stomach. "Okay you know what to hell with, Kakashi-baka's rules. I can't eat a meal in peace with someone's stomach growling" yelled Naruto after fifteen minutes.

"Well what do suggest we do about it Dobe?" said Sasuke coldly but doing nothing to hide the hunger in his voice.

Sighing and silently cursing fate, Naruto moved over to Sasuke and stabbed a piece of meat and held it up to his mouth. "Here, you're going to need all the energy you can get to pass the test." Sasuke just looked at the dobe in shock. "Don't get any ideas Uchiha, I still think that you are a _teme_ and that is not likely to change anytime soon. But if anyone's stomach is going to cost us this test, it's going to be mine got it. Now open up" said the blonde as he attempted to stuff the piece of meat down Sasuke's throat nearly choking him.

"Stop that dobe, my mouth is not the vacuum cleaner yours is" yelled Sasuke with a cough.

"THAT'S IT TEME, PREPARE TO DIE!" yelled Naruto becoming irate as he lunged towards his opponent only to get held back by Hinata.

"P-p-please Naruto, no fighting, Kakashi-sensei said that we will only succeed if we work together" she said as stood between the two, her legs a little wobbly from nerves but holding firm.

"Grrr, lucky Hinata's here Teme or right now the only thing you would be eating would be my fist" said Naruto as he reluctantly stood down.

"Like you're even fast enough to hit me," retorted Sasuke coolly.

"N-Naruto, please go sit and finish eating. I give Sasuke-san some of my lunch. I barely used any chakra and I usually don't really have much of appetite" said Hinata pleadingly sensing Naruto was about to explode again.

"Fine, but if that Teme makes one more crack, just one more…" Naruto punched his hand into his palm symbolizing just what he would do. Sasuke just retaliated with a smirk that plainly said "Try it" before he settled enough to allow Hinata to feed him some of his lunch.

0o0o0o0o

The three Ninja had only just finished their bento boxes when Kakashi reappeared in a swirl of leaves, his face a storm cloud of anger. "I told you not to feed him and you disobeyed me, WHY?"

"Cause, like it or not, we need all three of us at our best to pass. And the only hope we have to succeed is if all of us are at our best and not being wracked with hunger pains. NOW EITHER FAIL US OR GIVE US THE DAMN TEST!" yelled Naruto.

"Is that how you all feel?" asked Kakashi as he looked to the others who nodded in agreement with their blonde teammate. "And are you prepared to face the consequences?" all three of them nodded firmly. "Very well then… Congratulations you all pass" said Kakashi with an approving smile.

"WHAT?" cried Naruto at he face faulted into the dirt. "B-b-b-b-but you said…"

"Look underneath the underneath Naruto, I just spent the entire morning trying to drill into your heads the concept of team work. Why would I suddenly turn around and say don't help a teammate in need. Yes this was another test of your teamwork but it also was a test of your loyalty towards each other. Naruto, even though you dislike Sasuke you offered him some of your food, Hinata, despite your self doubt, you stepped between your teammates when they began to loose sight of the objective, and you Sasuke even though it wounded your pride accepted help.

Even though I told you all of you that if you gave Sasuke food that I would fail your entire team, you went ahead and did it anyway. While your reasons were not the greatest, you still put your teammates above yourself and that is what in my opinion makes a true ninja" said Kakashi as he cut Sasuke free from the post before leading the trio over to a clump of bushes and revealed a stone monument.

"This stone monument is etched with the names of every ninja who died in service to the village. The names of my Sensei and my best friends are etched there, and they both died to help save my life. My best friend died saving me from my own arrogance during the Third Great Ninja War and out of respect for him I follow his Nindo: Those that break the rules are trash, but those that abandon their comrades are worse.

When I decided to train my own Genin team I swore that I wouldn't pass a team unless they were able to understand that lesson. Being the best single Ninja is nothing, but being the best team of ninjas means everything. And today you three at least showed that you have the spark to be a great ninja team, yes there are a few rough edges but that is why I am here, to help smooth those edges. Now take the rest of the day to rest Team 7, we start training and missions tomorrow morning" said Kakashi proudly giving them a thumbs up.

"WE DID IT, WE'RE NINJA!" yells Naruto happily causing Hinata to smile at his enthusiasm and Sasuke to just shake his head and mutter "Dobe" under his breath. Satisfied with themselves the trio headed out of the training area secure in the fact that they were now real ninja.

Their sensei just standing back to watch them go as old ghosts from the past transposed themselves over the trio. "Enjoy your victory today for tomorrow the real work begins" said Kakashi with a sad smile before vanishing in a swirl of leaves.

**A/n: End Chapter... Looking back I like how this one turned out... hope you did to. Remember to review, flame, question my religion, make fun of my momma, and my manhood so long as you hit the blue button to do so... and to you guys who don't like to sign in to review... leave an email so that I can try to answer you.**


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